Islam-West divide 'grows deeper'
In September 2005l Jyllands-Posten, the conservative mass circulation daily, asked 40 illustrators to defy Islam's prohibition against depicting the Prophet. On Sept. 30, it published a dozen of their drawings.
Giving more fuel to the fire, several other European newspapers re-printed these cartoons.
Since then Muslims around the world have launched a protest against these depictions.
Addressing an international conference intended to promote dialogue between Western and Islamic thinkers, Mr. Abdullah Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, said Islam and the West should stop demonizing each other, and try to curb extremism and promote moderation.
Mr. Badawi says a huge chasm has opened between the West and Islam, fuelled by Muslim frustrations over Western foreign policy.
Key figures from the UN, the EU and a prominent pan-Islamic body have jointly called for calm in the wake of outrage over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and his counterparts called the drawings offensive, but expressed alarm at the violent worldwide reaction to them.
The prime minister of Denmark, where the cartoons were first published, said they had led to a "global crisis".
Is the gap widening between Islam and the West?
Join our forum to discuss this issue.
Jrgensen from Denmark says ..
I understand why the Muslim world hates Denmark. When I look in the newspaper, I find that journalists around the world did NOT do a good job investigating reliable sources of information, or explaining the situation properly. It is very complex and at the same time so very simple. Please read this if you want to try to understand what is going on in Denmark. I am terribly sorry about the situation, and I wish we could learn to understand each other better. I do not expect Muslims to understand Danish culture, but I ask you to try. I know it is not easy. More ..
Related Suggestions
25:63 And the servants of ((Allah)) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, "Peace!";
Praise be to the One who gives us this inner peace. Wa la yabqa illa wajhu rabuka thol jalal wal fatan. What a beautiful religion. Neither Allah nor Prophet Mohammad pbuh need my protection. It is I who need their protection. We all have the choice to serve God or our own ego. I am certain that God can look after Himself! It is I who can not do without HIM. Let's just smile brothers/sisters. It has a magic far beyond burning buildings!! Peace.
The Danish publishers and their French counterparts and the other so called "think tanks" ought to understand that God and his messengers must be left alone. It seems to me that so many Europeans have walked so far from religion that their lives are purely secular; therefore, their social morbidity and moral decadence has taken over the lives of millions of people. The direct result of all that is millions of teenagers addicted to alcohol, drugs, and sex. I am happy to see that so many millions of Muslims expressed their anger although I do not condone their violent acts. If Jesus, Moses, and Mohammed were alive today, they would have probably condemned such cartoons. After all, didn't they all stand against the incitement of hate and insults? The Danish publishers knew well that a deadly storm will erupt one way or the other. Otherwise, they were some of the most gullible and stupidest individuals alive. Where is European civility here? Or do they apply it when and where they want? The world is too smart for them. Enough of their sleazy attitude! Enough of their bullying, victimizing, and demonizing of the very people who showed them the way to civility!
But Muslim leaders have pointed out that such words fail to resonate when the government coalition includes the Danish People's Party, whose leaders have publicly compared Muslims to "cancer cells."
Read more :
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/12/international/europe/12denmark.html
I have been watching in media- TV ,newspapers, radios talk show hosts etc. about the freedom of press and speech, and views and thoughts by politicians, Journalists and some other people.
They are ignoring that there is a lot of difference when it is applied to any religion and it's values, beleifs, faith, and prophets.
There is no comparision between the cartoons of some political leaders, wars, violence and those related to religion.Who started this first?
Go and fix the roots of the cause that are against muslims and their religion instead of criticising against the violence. When the cartons were first published in Denmark and muslims protested, why did other countries re-publish?
No muslim and muslims newspapers has printed or published in any form about:
(A)the person crucified on the cross, when we believe that was not Jesus as he was ascended to heaven. It is because of this HE will return. No other prophet returns as they died.
(B)the bible and it's contents(graphic,revised, edited facts about Prophets Lut, Moses, Jesus pbut). Many religious priests have doubts about the contents.
If some politicians and Journalists think other way, then we want to see some cartoons of their religion, values and faith in their newspapers around the world.
Please try to get this , That the GOD is the Creator of everything in this universe including the spirits, Angels,and the people including the Jesus pbuh.
God has created all prophets , ADAM to Abraham to Jesus to MUHAMMAD, they all worshipped the same God, they spread the word of same god thru the Holy books revealed on them and they returned to the same GOD.
Why this hate and fight to people of same GOD?